REGION, July 18th- Kevin Gallagher, President of the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 101 in Scranton, which represents mail clerks, maintenance workers and conducts clerical work, told the newspaper that the union was told by management of the United States Postal Service (USPS) that the Scranton Processing Center will not be consolidated until at least after April 30th, 2016.

The USPS announced in 2012 it would consolidate 48 mail processing centers throughout the nation including their operations in Scranton to the Lehigh Valley. The USPS stated the plan would save the agency nearly $1.2 billion a year.

The USPS stated around 5,000 workers would be affected by the consolidation. However, no lays-off would occur instead jobs would be “re-bid” under the labor agreement’s with the USPS and workers is some cases would need to either relocate or travel to other postal service facilities to continue to be employed by the USPS.

The Scranton mail processing center was scheduled to be consolidated with the Lehigh Valley facility on July 15th. However, the USPS delayed that action and has since notified the labor organization’s involved that the Scranton facility would remain operational until next year.

Mr. Gallagher previously told the newspaper that his members were getting adjusted the best they could with their jobs being eliminated and many of them would need to do other USPS work to continue working with the agency. Local 268 represents the APWU members that are employed at the Lehigh Valley facility.

APWU members will be the most effected by the merger. Mr. Gallagher stated more than half of his 180 members will need to be re-located or be re-assigned to other postal duties, such as becoming mail delivery carriers. Under the Collective Bargaining Agreement with the USPS an effected employee could be placed within 50 miles of their current workplace.

Mr. Gallagher stated he has talked to mail customers that have noticed that it often now takes longer for mail to reach its designation because of the USPS changing the mail delivery standards. Mr. Gallagher said what the management of the USPS is doing by lowering the mail standards is to fit with their decision of closing plants and making other anti-customer changes to the agency. He added that since the USPS changed mail delivery standards, customer complaints have increased because it now takes longer for letters and other correspondence to reach their destination.